Sunday, January 29, 2012

In today's readings, Christ teaches with authority, and casts out demons. Because through Baptism the Holy Spirit dwells in us, there is no room in us for whatever tries to possess us. We are claimed by Christ, and freed to love and serve God and our neighbor.

Vicar Erik Doughty, Fourth Sunday after Epiphany; texts: Mark 1:21-28

So, when was the last exorcism you attended?

We in the rational, Enlightenment-affected, Science-friendly, Western church like to think, in daily life, that we are logical and self-controlled and sensible. We don’t often talk about things like unclean spirits, or how to get rid of them. But in liturgy and practice . . .

“We confess that we are in bondage to [or, “captive to”] sin, and cannot free ourselves.”

“Do you renounce the devil and all the forces that defy God? Do you renounce the powers of this world that rebel against God? Do you renounce the ways of sin that draw you from God?”

“Child of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever.” Our last exorcism was on January 8, the baptism of the newest member of the Spalding family; and before that, another on December 18, the baptism of the youngest Berka.

Our usual entry to Christian life and faith includes exorcism . . . and possession by Christ, into whose body the Holy Spirit enters at his baptism. (The Holy Spirit comes to us, too, in baptism.)

And in Affirmation of Baptism --what used to be called “Confirmation” -- those same renunciations are spoken again-- with the addition of this prayer: Stir up in (name) the gift of your Holy Spirit: the spirit of wisdom and understanding; the spirit of counsel and might; the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord; the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever. Amen.”

You see, in baptism the Triune God takes possession of us. The Holy Spirit enters in, lives in us. We are not our own. We belong as part of Christ’s body, the Church.

. . . and so, we speak Christ’s words, not our own.
. . . and so, we act in ways that build up community, not tearing down community.
. . . and so, we fear and love God. Perhaps you recall Luther’s small-catechism explanation of the eighth commandment? We should so fear and love God that we do not betray, slander, or lie about our neighbor, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain his actions in the kindest way.

And no, this isn’t a sermon about the commandments-- but you can see the connections; you’re a smart bunch. In baptism, the Holy Spirit kicks out whatever unclean spirits are in us, and then the Holy Spirit lives within us, creating faith, allowing us to build community in ways we couldn’t before. It gives us a healthy fear of the Creator of All That Is; we see God and are awestruck.

And baptism, with its exorcism of other spirits and invocation of the Holy Spirit, also gives us love for God and for one another--and the neighbor Luther speaks about-- because God dwells not only in us, but also in places beyond us-- which we signify here at Mount Olive by reverencing the cross, and the Gospel book, and the altar, and the blessed communion bread and wine-- and God dwells in this congregation, too, each one of us, and so we bow to one another, forgiven sinner-to-forgiven sinner, one temple of the Holy Spirit to another Temple of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps we should reverence the neighborhood as we exit the church building? Perhaps. God is present in the world, too.

And the peace of God comes from God AND dwells with each one of us, so that when we say “The peace of the Lord be with you,” it is not a symbolic formality but it is something actually happening, changing, transacting from one member of the body of Christ to another, in those words, at that moment. As Susan said last week during education hour, words are not just words; words have effects; and these are holy words; and they have holy effects. We do not say them idly. We should so fear and love God that we recognize the reality we create with our words (and with God’s words).

I’m going to preach to the choir a little now (not literally). Because you know this, but in a little while you’ll go out the church doors and others NEED to know this:

I have been reading an ongoing discussion about words, where one person used the word “homo”, reasoning that it was a logical abbreviation for a longer word referring to gay and lesbian people. Well-- we should so fear and love God that we do not call fellow members of the body of Christ -- or of our general human family -- names. We should so fear and love God that we build up the body of Christ in every way we can think of. We should so fear and love God that we acknowledge and encourage love when we find it.

And we should so fear and love God AND ONE ANOTHER that we do not use these texts today to hurt people. If we are going to name those things which draw us from God, those sins to which we are in bondage, let us say clearly that being gay or lesbian or bisexual or transgender is not the same as having an unclean spirit. Being gay or lesbian, bisexual or transgender, does not draw us away from God any more than being heterosexual does.

By contrast, what becomes demonic are those things which take hold in us which we cannot control, and which clearly does harm to us, to others, to the community, to the church. Abuse- sexual or physical or emotional -- is demonic. Addiction-- to whatever we cannot shake, which takes control of us and will not let go of its own accord-- is demonic. For some, jealousy. For some, envy. For some, gluttony. For some, racism. There’s a pretty long list, actually.

You might know some of your own demons. And sometimes they will not go away completely in this life. I’ve actually given a name one of mine, a name for my tendency to sometimes be overly cautious and overly critical of myself, and to see everything in the most pessimistic way. Having a name for it allows me to realize it is not really *me*.

And I am convinced that it is the Holy Spirit residing within me that allowed me to see that personal demon for what it is-- and, in naming it, to have the authority to toss it out when I recognize it. “Oh hi-- I recognize you. Yes, I know what you’re going to say. Now shoo!” And you know, it no longer has the power over me that it had before. It stops in every now and then; and I say hello --and shoo it back out the door.

The same Jesus Christ who today exemplifies teaching with authority will, by the end of the Gospel according to Mark, lose every bit of authority and power we’ve heard today, stripped from him by our human desire for power and control and order. So I am not telling you “be like Jesus,” no, not quite. But, too, at the end of this Gospel we’re beginning now, Jesus has been raised from death, does not live in the tomb, but is out in the world again, alive, at work, living and acting now with authority granted by God, Christ who has utterly destroyed the power of sin and death. It is the risen Christ we worship today.

In the name of the risen Christ, whose light is spreading through the world, you and I are called to recognize and name chaos and darkness for what it is. And we are given the authority, as children of the Father, as members of the body of the risen Christ, and as temples of the Holy Spirit, to evict the demons we encounter. “Shoo, get out, I belong to Christ, not to you,” is a good start. I know that may sound glib. But we don’t need fancy language; we need to remember that God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is already with us and in us, and in this faith community at Mount Olive.

Christ has claimed each person here. And Christ has no space to spare, no patience for unclean spirits; Christ washes us in baptism and says, “Come eat the bread of life; drink the cup of salvation, this is my body broken, my blood shed, for you-- a new covenant, for forgiveness of sin”.

The Holy Spirit is already in us, in residence; there is no vacancy for the unclean spirits. And so we are set free, you and I; set free to go out those doors and model in the world how incredibly amazing it is to belong to Christ, to love one another, to live without fear of sin but to live IN the awe and love of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-- and to live out confident love of God and neighbor, each day of the week.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The season of Epiphany usually has a shift mid-season between readings for our Eucharist which focus on call and discipleship to Gospels about the early ministry of Jesus, along with complementary readings from the rest of Scripture. That shift happens this week, as we leave behind two weeks of focus on calls of God and begin looking at the ministry of Jesus, specifically his healing.

But there is a connection between these themes. Jesus did several things throughout his earthly ministry. He taught, often using parables. He healed people of disease and possession, even doing several resurrections. He did other miracles or signs which showed his divine power. And he gathered a group of followers, disciples, who stayed with him throughout his ministry. Of this large group of perhaps more than 100, twelve were chosen as an inner circle of disciples.

At one level, the gathering of disciples was not uncommon. Itinerant teachers of the day often had their own followers, as well as teachers who lived in one place and drew people to them. John the Baptist had disciples, some of whom left him to follow Jesus. In the past two weeks we’ve heard Jesus’ call to Philip, Nathanael, Andrew, Simon Peter, James, and John – six of the inner twelve. In this Jesus is just acting like a teacher is expected to act.

However, for Jesus there is something more. These disciples, whom we famously remember as awkward, often confused, less than brilliant followers, were a vital part of Jesus’ mission. He healed, yes. But he also sent his disciples out to heal. He taught, yes. But he also sent his disciples out to teach. He gathered people to himself, yes. But he also sent his disciples to proclaim the kingdom of God and bring people to know God’s love in Jesus.

All this was preparing the disciples, all of them (not just the twelve), to do something crucial. They became the ministry of Jesus themselves after Pentecost. Jesus, in fact, was a prelude to what the big plan was. Rather than being the best part, something to be looked back at with nostalgia and longing, the ministry of Jesus was the first course, leading to a feast which only his disciples could spread to the entire world. Yes, we still read of Jesus’ ministry today. But we are mistaken if we think that it was the main point of his coming.

The main point of his coming was to call disciples, and now us, to do what he did, to be who he is, to continue, expand, deepen and spread his ministry. The profound truth of his death and resurrection, the celebration of which is starting to come closer with the advent of Lent in mid-February, is that by dying and rising and defeating the powers of evil and death, Jesus is able to fill all his disciples with the power of the Spirit of God to become him, to be the anointed ones of God in the world. Freed from our fears of all that can harm us, we are empowered in the risen life of Jesus to continue the healing of the world.

As we move into a focus on those first days of Jesus’ ministry in these next weeks, let us keep in mind our own calls to follow, to learn, to be discipled, to be Christ. God grant us the Spirit that we might answer our call and continue God’s healing of the world.

- Joseph

This Sunday’s Adult Forum

Jan. 29: Susan Cherwien will offer the second in a 2-part series on Hymns and Worship.

2011 Year-End Statements

Contribution statements for the year ending December 31, 2011 will be available on a table near the coat area for contributors to pick up.

If you cannot be at church in the coming weeks and would like your statement mailed to you, please call the church office.

Welcoming!

At Mount Olive we identify ourselves as Musical, Liturgical and Welcoming. Each of these descriptive terms has a number of facets.

On Sunday, February 12, 2012 at the 10:45 a.m. liturgy, we will welcome those who have indicated that they want to become "official" members at Mount Olive. If you are interested in membership at Mount Olive, please speak with Pastor Crippen, contact the office at 612-827-5919, or speak with Andrew Andersen, the Director of Evangelism.

Sign Up for Altar Flowers

The Altar Flowers Chart for 2012 is now posted in the church office. If you would like to sign up to provide flowers for worship to commemorate a special day, in memory of a loved one, in honor of a special event, or simply to help beautify our sanctuary for worship, please sign up on the chart for the date you want, and be sure to include your designation. The cost of the altar flowers this year is $50 a Sunday for two bouquets. You may sign up to purchase both bouquets by signing on both lines, or purchase just one bouquet ($25) by signing on only one line.

Book Discussion Group

For its meeting on February 11, the Book Discussion Group will read Native Son, by Richard Wright, and for the March 10 session A Passage to India, by E. M. Forster. Book Discussion meets on the second Saturday of each month at 10:00 a.m. at the church. All readers welcome!

Heart Healthy Food and Fun Event

Set aside February 12 for a not-to-be-missed dinner at Mount Olive, with “hearts” as its theme. Sponsored by the Neighborhood Ministries Committee, this fundraiser promises to be deliciously “heart healthy,” as well as fun. Hans Tisberger will provide games and prizes. Tickets for the event will are $12 for adults, $5 for children aged 5 to 12. Children under 5 are free. Join the fun and support the raising of funds to acquire additional needed kitchen equipment.

Meals On Wheels

Mount Olive left the South Minneapolis Meals on Wheels program last January. In order to continue in this vital neighborhood ministry, we joined TRUST, Inc. One of TRUST’s many programs is that of Meals on Wheels.

The list of Meals on Wheels driver/deliverers at Mount Olive was given to TRUST, Inc. They have scheduled the following Mount Olive members to drive/deliver Meals on Wheels: Nancy and Gary Flatgard, Elaine and Art Halbardier, Karen Johnson, Mary and Bob Lee and Connie and Rod Olson. Others from the list of driver/deliverers at Mount Olive could be recruited by TRUST, Inc. We are thankful to those who continue to drive and deliver Meals on Wheels. Gary Flatgard has represented Mount Olive on the TRUST, Inc. board of directors.

TRUST, Inc. has many other neighborhood ministry programs in which Mount Olive could participate. Their wide range of programs will be described at a future adult forum by a TRUST, Inc. representative. All are encouraged to watch for this forum and attend. We need to be well informed and supportive of these neighborhood ministries

Minnesota FoodShare Cordially Invites You to Their Kick-Off Event

The Westminster Town Hall Forum, on Thursday, February 23, at 12 noon will be the kick-off event for the 30th Minnesota FoodShare. Rick Steves, host to the popular travel show on Minnesota Public Television, will speak about hunger from a global and local perspective. Further details can be found on http://www.westminsterforum.org/.

2012 RIC Festival WorshipJanuary 28, 4:30 p.m.

This seventh annual festival worship service celebrates the Metro area ministry of Reconciling in Christ congregations at Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, 1509 27th Ave. NE., Minneapolis this Saturday, January 28 at 4:30 p.m.

The Rev. Justin Lind-Ayres of Bethany Lutheran Church will preach. Freewill offering to benefit the RIC Program. Light supper (no cost) & fellowship to follow. Over supper, debuting a Readers Theater play by William Randall Beard, "Families Valued."

Bread for the WorldWorkshops and Offering of Letters

The 2012 Bread for the World workshop, "Cut Hunger, Not Hunger Programs" will be held at three different locations and dates. On Thursday, February 23, 9a.m. -noon, at Guardian Angels Catholic Church, 8260 4th Street N, Oakdale; on Saturday, February 25, 9a.m.-noon, at St. Stephen's Lutheran Church, 8400 France Ave. S., Bloomington; and on Wednesday, February 29, 7-9 p.m. at Bethel University, Eastlund Room in Community Life Center, 3900 Bethel Dr., Arden Hills.

This year, Bread for the World members and advocates need to raise our voices more than ever. The deficit-reduction proposals Congress is considering could result in the most severe cuts to programs for hungry and poor people in Bread's history.

Bread's 2012 Offering of Letters overall campaign will work to create a circle of protection around those most vulnerable by working to protect the funding of programs for hungry and poor people. The focus will be on four mini-campaigns: domestic nutrition assistance, poverty-focused foreign assistance, tax credits for low-income families, and international food aid.

Individuals may join the group at any time. For further information, contact the coordinator, Norine Larson at 952-925-2437.

Plan Ahead!

March is Minnesota FoodShare Month!

From 2008 to 2010 visits to the food shelves increased by 62%. During that time in the Twin Cities it increase by 97%! But the suburbs are suffering too. Since 2008, Second Harvest reported a 70% increase by seniors to suburban food programs. There were more than three million visits altogether to Minnesota food shelves in 2010. More hunger facts are posted on the Neighborhood Ministries bulletin board.

Once again Mount Olive congregation is invited to participate in Minnesota FoodShare Month. Bring your non-perishable food donations any Sunday during the month of March and place them in the grocery cart in the cloak room. The goal this year is to collect a total of 12 million combined dollars and pounds of food from congregations, businesses, and individuals throughout Minnesota. This amount will stock food shelves around the state with more than half the food distribution needed annually. And remember, food shelves can stretch donations of cash further than donations of food, because of their access to discount products and programs. So your cash donations go much farther! If you would like to make a cash donation, make your check out to Mount Olive and in the memo line write "MN FoodShare," and place it in the offering plate.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Today’s readings are filled with dramatic calls to turn to God, to follow the Son of God. For us, focusing on the drama of these calls might cause us to miss our everyday calls to serve God, to do justice, to bring in God’s kingdom.

Sisters and brothers, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

I am amazed by the people in today’s readings. They have unbelievable clarity of vision and they act with urgency. Jonah walks into a city of over 100,000, cries out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” And “the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.”

Then Paul, former persecutor of the Church, today tells his hearers that there is very little time to act, that the days of this world are almost over, and urges them to follow his example after his conversion, and completely change their lives.

In our Gospel, Mark uses the word “immediately” twice. That’s not unusual for him, “immediately” is his common transition word throughout the Gospel, but what happens “immediately” today is eye-opening. Jesus shows up on the lakeshore, calls the brothers Andrew and Simon to follow him and fish for people. “And immediately they left their nets and followed him,” Mark says. “Immediately” after they follow, Jesus calls James and John and they also leap, leaving Mark to describe this sad little scene: “And they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.”

These people are convicted somehow, changed somehow, moved somehow, and they follow, they repent, they live life as if each day was their last day.

It’s almost tiring just to think about. Why aren’t we that way? Have any of us ever completely changed the way we live to begin to live in God’s ways? Have any of us ever dropped anything to follow God’s call?
And what would happen if we did? Because the other powerful image that sticks with me from our readings today is the sight of poor old Zebedee, standing in the boat with his hired hands, helplessly watching his two sons – his future, his business, his life – walk away after an itinerant preacher.

This whole “all or nothing” drama in our readings today seems foreign to us, and if anything, it is concern for our lives, for our own Zebedees, which perhaps prevents us from dropping everything in response to God. Or maybe the problem is that we just don’t think experiences like this, calls like these, actually happen to us.

These are dramatic, compelling stories.

The people of Nineveh’s wickedness is so great God sends special warning in the person of Jonah. And they listen, they believe, they repent! Their immediate and complete turnaround is astonishing. Think how long it would take most of us to change our lives so completely and radically, to re-do our way of being.
And Paul’s call to the Corinthians to put aside anything which distracts them from their following of Jesus comes directly from his “drop everything” experience on the road to Damascus.

The first disciples’ response is at least as compelling. It’s hard not to worry about their families, including poor Zebedee. But how can we not admire them? They saw the Son of God, they felt his love, and they said, “I need to be a part of that.” And they left everything with that clarity, and followed Jesus.

While we might admire these people, our difficulty is that even if we were to sense such a dramatic call from God, we’d struggle to act on it as they did.

These people, these stories, are easy to admire from a distance – they’re ancient, they’re in a book.

When it comes down to our own lives, though, we’d rather not change in a way that total repentance calls for. The disruption to our sense of who we are, our “normal” way of being, would be profound. And we’d rather avoid that. So we pretend it’s not so bad, our lives don’t require a radical shift of focus.

And, we’d rather not drop everything, leave all that we love, and follow. This one’s easier to understand – we have people who depend on us, lives which require our attention, details which only we can do. What mentally healthy person would simply uproot at a moment’s notice and leave everything? Paul seems to suggest these things are distractions, but to us they are life, and even though there are a couple places where Jesus himself suggests we need to let go of anything which prevents us following him, even family, it’s a move we actually don’t feel justified making. After all, aren’t we serving God by caring for those who surround us? So we argue ourselves out of following in this way.

And third, we’d rather assume we’ve got years to live instead of living as if we were on our last day. In part, Paul’s urgency is muted for us because 2,000 years later we’re still here – it’s hard to get excited about this being the end of time, as perhaps the early believers did. So we act as if we have all the time in the world.

But at the heart of our problem perhaps is that believing in the Triune God has become comfortable for us. We live in a society which allows us freedom to believe. So we don’t have persecution, we don’t have risk in coming to church. We can be active in a congregation if we want, or not.

And unlike Nineveh, Paul, or the disciples, we’ve heard this message our whole lives. There’s nothing new to us here.

And we live 2,000 years after the person of Jesus, God’s Son, walked, taught, lived, died, and rose. He’s not, after all, standing in front of us on some beach, looking directly into our eyes, saying, “Come, follow me.” And mostly we like that. We can serve God with our lives, or we can serve ourselves, and not really have to fret about the repercussions or consequences.

Human nature often prefers order, predictability, planning. Nothing disrupts all that like a voice from God, be it prophet, preacher, or Jesus himself, that calls us to see the world differently, live in the world differently, look at our lives differently.

So there are two questions: first, does God still call us to follow, to repent, to live as if the time were short, or not? And second, would we respond like these folks if God did?

First question: is God calling to us today?

It would be hard to argue the negative here. Our Biblical examples have clear needs that must be addressed: Nineveh’s wickedness cannot continue. And they need to hear of God’s forgiveness as well. And Jesus has people that need to be fished for, people who need the Good News.

The same reality exists today. There is still great evil and injustice and wickedness in the world that needs addressing, not couch sitting. Many people don’t have the option to sit back and do nothing. Death and hate and pain force them to act, to live. Doesn’t God need those of us who are comfortable and free to use all our power and wealth to do something? And not just for the sufferers, but also for the evil-doers? After all, God loved the Ninevites.

And there are still many in this world who have not been reached with the message of God’s love in Jesus, about the life that is ours in Christ. Doesn’t Jesus still need people-fishers, good-news-tellers?
And our lives still aren’t close to perfected, they aren’t lived as Christ, so surely a call to repent like Nineveh isn’t out of order?

It seems that God’s love for this broken world still reveals a lot that we are uniquely capable of doing or need to do. So why is it that we too often take our faith as a comfort rather than a challenge? Or that we see such calls as in our readings today as relics of the past, not our present reality?

I wonder if our focus on these dramatic calls leads us to miss the ways we could follow God today.

This will get us to the second question, but first, I think that we make a mistake in admiring the dramatic shifts for these people. Yes, these are dramatic stories, with apparent tremendous life-changes attending.
But in fact for all of them, the hard part was living after these events, and daily making changes and answering God’s call. The Ninevites surely didn’t instantly become good. If they truly were repentant, it was going to be a day-to-day effort, with regular attention to old patterns and choosing new ones. Paul apparently converted all at once, but it still had to be a constant effort to hear God’s call, to make decisions based on his new reality, to follow where God led.

And the four fishermen? Well, evidence within the Gospels suggests that they got home from time to time, and probably helped out with the business occasionally. But the deeper evidence is that this was for them the beginning of a new life, not the achievement. Their bumbling and lack of understanding eventually transformed in the light of Jesus’ resurrection into fearless preaching and martyrdom. But it was a daily, if not hourly change.

So we might think we’ve not received such powerful life-changing calls to be different, to follow, to turn to God. But if we look at our lives, and at the way our Lord Jesus is calling us to live, we can see plenty of room for turning around, for change, for new life.

It may not be a call to sell everything and move to the mission field. But that doesn’t mean it’s any less dramatic a change. Even if we stay with our lives, and care for our families and our neighbors and our community, we are called to repent, to serve, to follow with our all.

And that’s where the rub comes, the second question: if God is calling us just as with the people of the Scriptures, are we at all interested in following?

And I’m not sure I’m capable of answering that here – that becomes something for each one of us to take home and ponder. The needs for God’s world are still there, and the call of the Scriptures, through whom the Holy Spirit speaks to us and shapes us, applies to us as much as Peter or Andrew, Jonah or Paul. And so we have to ask: are we willing to face the changes it will mean in our everyday lives, our personality, our way of living, our interaction with others, to be followers, disciples of Jesus? Or not?

We may find ourselves with a clarity of call which we try to confuse or obfuscate simply to avoid its clarity.

We may hide behind the excuse that no such dramatic events have ever challenged or called us, and therefore we’re perfectly fine living our lives as we want, without worry about what God might need from us.
But I think we know now that isn’t true. And that just as God reached out to these people of the past, God is reaching out to us. We’d do well to listen, to seek counsel from each other, and to pray for the courage to follow.

Because you are needed. I am needed. And our Lord is waiting to see and hear what we do.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

In the lessons for last and this coming Sundays Jesus invites Philip, Simon, and Andrew to follow him, calling them to form his community of followers. Gordon Lathrop, our guest lecturer and preacher at this past weekend’s Conference on Liturgy thanked us for responding to the unique and important calling to serve the role of being a community that cares deeply for things liturgical. He has noticed that many metropolitan areas have one or at best a very small number of communities where these values provide a very important place for those in need of this kind of faith life in community. The combination of all these things gave cause for some thoughts which I share here.

First of all, we can understand that to be unique, and embracing that in and of itself, is unique. It’s not the way of the world in these days of the “consistency of commercial chains.” We can stand out as NOT being the same. In our role, God is blessed and proclaimed, we are blessed, and we are strengthened each week to return to that same culture to live in the world loving and serving our neighbor as God’s people.

As a “liturgical” people, there is responsibility, or a further calling to even deeper things.

I tell choirs I direct this: composers provide instructions for “how” to sing what we are singing. Loud here, soft here, crescendo here, accent here, long or short notes there. Simply observing them is one thing, but it is not enough. We need to explore “why” those instructions are there. The musical phrase needs to crescendo because it can do nothing else! The text in order to carry meaning needs staccato (short) notes and not legato (longer and deeply connected from note to note)! These instructions, in fact, are relatively recent in the grand scheme of music history – only included in the past couple of hundred years. Prior to that, musicians just “knew what was needed,” and composers presumed that and did not provide those instructions.

The same could be said for being called to be “liturgical.” It’s not really enough to simply observe the rubrical rules or instructions, or to be merely fascinated by them. We need to consider getting “under them” to know why they are what they are. Why do we process? Why do we not have announcements and constant verbal instructions? Why do many bow? Why do we observe the church year? Why do we stand? Why do we sing? Why do we process to the center for the reading of the Gospel lesson? Why do we adhere to using the lectionary? WE could just do these things – and indeed – even be fascinated by them (everyone loves a parade - processions are fun to watch, aren’t they?) but with thought, perhaps even personal research, we can get “underneath” why those things are practiced. And how do they become of the rest of our daily lives? Does doing anything “liturgical” mean anything to you outside of this community? I knew of one household that instead of band-aids to make a child feel better after getting a scratch, kept a small amount of “holy oil” to “anoint a wound” which probably addressed a deeper kind of healing for a crying child.

And, as I have often said, and will probably continue to say until I join the saints in the walls of the columbarium, what people who join us will notice is not so much “what” we do, but “how” we are doing it, and to what level we are “underneath” the meaningfulness of what we do. We do not need to presume our calling as community needs to be everyone’s, nor that ours is THE right one, nor that we can be critical of other’s calling. It can mean that we embrace that calling with joy and responsibility, and that it is meaningful and from a deep place is enough.

We do play an important role. We are unique. We are called to this unique ministry. Let’s get UNDER it!

- Cantor David Cherwien

Meals On Wheels

Mount Olive left the South Minneapolis Meals on Wheels program last January. In order to continue in this vital neighborhood ministry, we joined TRUST, Inc. One of TRUST’s many programs is that of Meals on Wheels.

The list of Meals on Wheels driver/deliverers at Mount Olive was given to TRUST, Inc. They have scheduled the following Mount Olive members to drive/deliver Meals on Wheels: Nancy and Gary Flatgard, Elaine and Art Halbardier, Karen Johnson, Mary and Bob Lee and Connie and Rod Olson. Others from the list of driver/deliverers at Mount Olive could be recruited by TRUST, Inc. We are thankful to those who continue to drive and deliver Meals on Wheels. Gary Flatgard has represented Mount Olive on the TRUST, Inc. board of directors.

TRUST, Inc. has many other neighborhood ministry programs in which Mount Olive could participate. Their wide range of programs will be described at a future adult forum by a TRUST, Inc. representative. All are encouraged to watch for this forum and attend. We need to be well informed and supportive of these neighborhood ministries

Foundation Gift Requests

Mount Olive Lutheran Church Foundation's Board of Directors will meet on Tuesday, January 24, to recommend program and project recipients from its annual gift to the Church. Board members are seeking from staff, Vestry, and congregation members gift designation ideas that will move Mount Olive's ministries forward in a variety of ways. In the past, the Foundation has benefited among other things: musical events, youth trips, capital improvements, Neighborhood Ministries, church anniversary celebrations and Diaper Depot.

If you have an idea for a program or project, please speak with the Vestry member who oversees the area of your interest. Together, you can decide whether to submit a brief one-page request to the Foundation for consideration. Please contact Keith Bartz at albsinmpls@yahoo.com or (612) 823-3572 with questions or to obtain a gift request form.

Adult Forum Topics for January

Jan. 22 & 29: Susan Cherwien will offer a 2-part series on Hymns and Worship.

Book Discussion Group

For it's meeting on January 21 (postponed one week this month due to the annual Conference on Liturgy), the Book Discussion Group we will read William Faulkner's A Light in August. And for the February 11 meeting the selection will be Native Son, by Richard Wright.

Welcoming!

At Mount Olive we identify ourselves as Musical, Liturgical and Welcoming. Each of these descriptive terms has a number of facets.

On Sunday, February 12, 2012 at the 10:45 a.m. liturgy, we will welcome those who have indicated that they want to become "official" members at Mount Olive. If you are interested in membership at Mount Olive, please speak with Pastor Crippen, contact the office at 612-827-5919, or speak with Andrew Andersen, the Director of Evangelism.

Sign Up for Altar Flowers

The Altar Flowers Chart for 2012 is now posted in the church office. If you would like to sign up to provide flowers for worship to commemorate a special day, in memory of a loved one, in honor of a special event, or simply to help beautify our sanctuary for worship, please sign up on the chart for the date you want, and be sure to include your designation. The cost of the altar flowers this year is $50 a Sunday for two bouquets. You may sign up to purchase both bouquets by signing on both lines, or purchase just one bouquet ($25) by signing on only one line.

Hymn Festival Reflections

Due to some technical difficulties at last Friday evening’s Conference on Liturgy Hymn Festival, Susan Cherwien’s reflections may not have been completely audible to all in attendance.

Susan has graciously made these reflections available in written form to any who may want them. They are located on the ledge just outside the church office, next to extra programs from the hymn festival.

2011 Year-End Statements

Contribution statements for the year ending December 31, 2011 will be available on a table near the coat area for contributors to pick up beginning this Sunday, January 22.

If you cannot be at church in the coming weeks and would like your statement mailed to you, please call the church office.

Church Library News

Thanks to our Mount Olive furnishings committee of 2010-11 for the addition of a new child-sized table and two chairs placed in the Crossroads Library area recently. The attractive table is even glass-topped and when I checked all the tiny fingerprints on it prior to our second liturgy on Sunday, I agreed that whoever made that decision, did so wisely. That also testifies that many little ones visit the popular children's browser bin quite regularly before, after or even during our liturgies.

In my usual helter-skelter method of perusing the articles in each Sunday's Star Tribune, imagine my surprise to find in yesterday's paper an article entitled "Decor By the Books," written by Sandra Barerra of the Los Angeles Daily News. The article includes details of interior designers who are installing whole walls of either real or fake books to create a library-look that is meant only to impress their client's friends or colleagues. You can read the article for yourself but one Minneapolis designer supposedly "loves his books, keeping many leather-bound antiques that have been in his family for generations, and also that he hopes the day will never come when books are eliminated from the home as they add so much ambience."

Well, with part of the above, I might agree, however, pondering the last sentence further and the continuation of the entire article, soon left me completely frustrated and frankly a bit angry. How sad that the books in use in the article are only there for "window dressing" so to speak. As an admitted "bookaholic," I struggle to find enough appropriate space in my apartment for all my many books. Keeping my books nearby is a necessity for most of them are my long-time "friends" you see, and it has very little to do with only adding decor to my home!

All of the above comes back to the congregation's use of our Louise Schroedel Memorial Library. Granted that the decor of our room may be enhanced by the books lining the shelves, but much more important is the "treasure trove" of good reading to be found there. In short, there is sure to be something there for everyone, if you will just come and take the time to explore it. Have you visited our church library recently? Let your New Year's resolutions include one that brings you (and your children) into our library soon to spend some time finding numerous "friends" of your own choosing, and plan to do so at least once a month all year long!

In my next article I will tell you about three new reference books to be added to our collection (plus some other newer books) that will soon be available for your use. I will close this time with the following quote from Joseph Howe: "My books are very few, but then the world is before me --- a Library open to all --- from which poverty of purse cannot exclude me ---- and in which the meanest and most paltry volume is sure to furnish something to amuse, if not to instruct and improve."

- Leanna Kloempken

Cultivating Respect, Creating Safe Schools for All Students

Twin Cities PFLAG announces the “Cultivating Respect, Creating Safe Schools for All Students” Conference, a day-long conference for 250 to be held on January 20, 2012 at Hamline University, St. Paul.

We invite all educators, social workers, psychologists, school nurses, school board members, administrators, parents, of GLBTQ individuals, students middle school through college, GLBTQ youth and allies, GSA leaders or anyone invested in creating healthy and safe schools for our children. Please encourage your neighbors, your child’s teacher or principal to attend as this is a great opportunity for learning and creating a new dialogue in which our children and their well being is placed front and center in our schools and communities.

There will be a number of break-out sessions on important topics such as how to create safe spaces, the impact of bullying on mental and physical health, understanding what is at the heart of bullying, prevention, and many more. Jamie Nabozny, the subject of the Southern Poverty Law Center documentary “Bullied,” will be the keynote speaker, along with a panel of youth from the Anoka-Hennepin School District. In the evening, we will host an awards dinner (which can be attended separately from the conference) where PFLAG will honor members of the community who have been committed to creating safer schools for our children.

To register for the conference, please visit: https://www.blacktie-innesota.com/tickets/index.cfm. For more information, visit www.pflagtc.com, or email: conference2012@pflagtc.com.

2012 RIC Festival Worship to be HeldJanuary 28, 4:30 p.m.

This seventh annual festival worship service celebrates the Metro area ministry of Reconciling in Christ congregations at Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, 1509 27th Ave. NE., Minneapolis on Saturday, January 28 at 4:30 p.m.

The Rev. Justin Lind-Ayres of Bethany Lutheran Church will preach. Freewill offering to benefit the RIC Program. Light supper (no cost) & fellowship to follow. Over supper, debuting a Readers Theater play by William Randall Beard, "Families Valued."

Bread for the World Workshops and Offering of Letters

The 2012 Bread for the World workshop, "Cut Hunger, Not Hunger Programs" will be held at three different locations and dates. On Thursday, February 23, 9a.m. -noon, at Guardian Angels Catholic Church, 8260 4th Street N, Oakdale; on Saturday, February 25, 9a.m.-noon, at St. Stephen's Lutheran Church, 8400 France Ave. S., Bloomington; and on Wednesday, February 29, 7-9 p.m. at Bethel University, Eastlund Room in Community Life Center, 3900 Bethel Dr., Arden Hills.

This year, Bread for the World members and advocates need to raise our voices more than ever. The deficit-reduction proposals Congress is considering could result in the most severe cuts to programs for hungry and poor people in Bread's history.

Bread's 2012 Offering of Letters overall campaign will work to create a circle of protection around those most vulnerable by working to protect the funding of programs for hungry and poor people. The focus will be on four mini-campaigns: domestic nutrition assistance, poverty-focused foreign assistance, tax credits for low-income families, and international food aid.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

As we move into Epiphany, we realize the surprising places where the light of Christ is shining, where the Word made flesh is dwelling. This Sunday the Word comes to Eli the prophet . . . through his servant boy, Samuel, who is not yet of age, but who sleeps in the temple near the Ark, where the presence of God dwells. And the Word that comes to Eli through Samuel is judgment -- not good news for Samuel, but Samuel does not drop the Word; he conveys it faithfully. And Eli, though his sight is dim, still “sees” this is the word from God.

Our Psalm proclaims that we are fearfully, wonderfully made, that God knows even our thoughts, and that there is no place we can go where God is not. God is everywhere we go. What do we do with that?

The Word comes through Paul to the Church at Corinth, where the members have become fond of saying, “All things are lawful for me,” -- and then doing, presumably, whatever they want to do. Paul’s word for them is, “You belong to Christ, and your body (body of believers? physical body? Yes.) is not your own; it’s a temple of the Holy Spirit.” Our freedom isn’t limited by a long list of “don’ts” but, because the Word and the Spirit are in our actual bodies, it matters what we do. There are things we should choose not to do for the sake of the body and the sake of the Holy Spirit; and, on the Gospel side, we are able to do amazing things and live graciously because God is present in the Church and in us. God no longer dwells in the Ark of the Covenant; you and I and the body of the Church is where God now chooses to dwell. What does THAT mean for us?

Finally, the Messiah comes from a little backwater town, Nazareth, of all places.

Where will the judging and saving, law and gospel presence of God show up for us this week?

- Vicar Erik Doughty

Tenth Annual Conference on Liturgy Liturgy ShapesJanuary 13-14, 2012

The conference begins this Friday evening, January 13, at 7:30 p.m. with a hymn festival, “Liturgy Shapes.” Leadership will be provided by Mount Olive Cantor David Cherwien, The National Lutheran Choir, and author and poet, Susan Palo Cherwien.

On Saturday, hear keynote speaker Gordon Lathrop discuss how liturgy shapes our believing and how liturgy shapes our sending. Participants will be invited to choose from four workshops which will explore this topic further. Senator John Marty will lead a workshop on the ways in which liturgy influences our public lives. Susan Palo Cherwien will offer a session on worship and language. Joseph Crippen, pastor of Mount Olive, will offer a presentation on children and the liturgy. The fourth session is continued conversation with Gordon Lathrop.

The day will open with Morning Prayer at 9:00 a.m. and close with Evening Prayer at 4:00 p.m. Gordon Lathrop will be the guest preacher on Sunday, January 15.

Cost for Mount Olive members is $35/person.

Cultivating Respect, Creating Safe Schools for All Students

As some of you may know, I am on the Board of Twin Cities PFLAG and we are very excited to sponsor the “Cultivating Respect, Creating Safe Schools for All Students” Conference, a day-long conference for 250 to be held on January 20, 2012 at Hamline University, St. Paul.

We invite all educators, social workers, psychologists, school nurses, school board members, administrators, parents, of GLBTQ individuals, students middle school through college, GLBTQ youth and allies, GSA leaders or anyone invested in creating healthy and safe schools for our children. Please encourage your neighbors, your child’s teacher or principal to attend as this is a great opportunity for learning and creating a new dialogue in which our children and their well being is placed front and center in our schools and communities.

There will be a number of great break-out sessions on important topics such as how to creating safe spaces, the impact of bullying on mental and physical health, understanding what is at the heart of bullying, prevention, and many more. Jamie Nabozny, the subject of the Southern Poverty Law Center documentary “Bullied,” will be the keynote speaker along with a panel of youth from the Anoka-Hennepin School District. In the evening, we will host an awards dinner (which can be attended separately from the conference) where PFLAG will honor members of the community who have been committed to creating safer schools for our children.

Please feel free to call me directly if you have any questions at 612-696-4117 or 360-319-8888. - Gretchen Campbell-Johnson

Thank You!

Mount Olive's chancel, nave and narthex were again beautifully decorated for the Christmas season. This was accomplished through the efforts of many: those who brought in and placed the trees, the volunteers that participated in "Hanging the Greens" and the special crew that hung the lights and Chrismons on the trees.

Also, kudos to those who removed the greens and trees and cleaned up after. We are grateful and wish to thank all of you for your time and willing hands.

Foundation Gift Requests

Mount Olive Lutheran Church Foundation's Board of Directors will meet on Tuesday, January 24, to recommend program and project recipients from its annual gift to the Church. Board members are seeking from staff, Vestry, and congregation members gift designation ideas that will move Mount Olive's ministries forward in a variety of ways. In the past, the Foundation has benefited among other things: musical events, youth trips, capital improvements, Neighborhood Ministries, church anniversary celebrations and Diaper Depot.

If you have an idea for a program or project, please speak with the Vestry member who oversees the area of your interest. Together, you can decide whether to submit a brief one-page request to the Foundation for consideration. Please contact Keith Bartz at albsinmpls@yahoo.com or (612) 823-3572 with questions or to obtain a gift request form.

Adult Forum Topics for January

Jan. 15: Art Halbardier will lead a presentation on the Development of the Nicene CreedJan. 22 & 29: Susan Cherwien will offer a 2-part series on Hymns and Worship.

Book Discussion Group

For it's meeting on January 21 (postponed one week this month due to the annual Conference on Liturgy), the Book Discussion Group we will read William Faulkner's A Light in August. And for the February 11 meeting the selection will be Native Son, by Richard Wright.

Welcoming!

At Mount Olive we identify ourselves as Musical, Liturgical and Welcoming. Each of these descriptive terms has a number of facets.

On Sunday, February 12, 2012 at the 10:45 a.m. liturgy, we will welcome those who have indicated that they want to become "official" members at Mount Olive.

If you are interested in membership at Mount Olive, please speak with Pastor Crippen, contact the office at 612-827-5919, or speak with Andrew Andersen, the Director of Evangelism.

2012 RIC Festival WorshipJanuary 28, 4:30 p.m.

This seventh annual festival worship service celebrates the Metro area ministry of Reconciling in Christ congregations at Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, 1509 27th Ave. NE., Minneapolis on Saturday, January 28 at 4:30 p.m.

The Rev. Justin Lind-Ayres of Bethany Lutheran Church will preach. Freewill offering to benefit the RIC Program. Light supper (no cost) & fellowship to follow. Over supper, debuting a Readers Theater play by William Randall Beard, "Families Valued."

Please gather with members of more than 30 RIC congregations and organizations from across the metro area to celebrate the welcome we extend to the whole people of God!

Sunday, January 8, 2012

At this point in the Church Year, the Holy Spirit enters the stage, present at Jesus’ baptism but also given all of us in our own baptisms, which are for us our Pentecost. So we should expect the Spirit’s call and empowerment for our lives of discipleship.

Sisters and brothers, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

The Church Year begins with a lot of dramatic scenes from Scripture which are always compelling to us. In fact, the whole cycle of Christian festivals are a series of dramatic moments for us to see, experience, and reflect on. So we’ve had angels visiting a young woman, telling of her son’s impending arrival, and angels visiting shepherds nine months later to tell them of this birth. We’ve got this young couple traveling as the baby is about to arrive, and struggling to find room. And then there’s the birth itself, with animals and wondering visitors, concluding Friday night with the star-gazers from the East arriving with exotic gifts. And even today in this familiar story of Jesus’ baptism, there is drama – the baptizer-prophet standing up to his waist in the waters of the Jordan, and Jesus and all Jerusalem comes to him.

There’s a lot of human interest in all these dramas. But it’s more than that. The Evangelists who tell these stories to us are actually also telling the story of God in the world, along with these powerful human dramas. So John, who tells little of the human elements of Jesus’ birth, powerfully evokes Genesis 1 and the creation story by claiming that Jesus is the Word of God and Son of God, present at the creation and creating with the Father. The angelic announcements always tie this child to God’s coming to the world.

What we sometimes don’t notice is who enters the drama in a significant way today, and what that means. At Jesus’ baptism the heavens are torn open, Mark says, and the Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove. And thanks to our lectionary, we hear the connections to Genesis 1 again by reading the first verses of that chapter. And like John’s claim, we find that this “Spirit” – who to this point hasn’t been a big part of the story, though was mentioned by the angel to Mary as part of how this Son would be born – we find that this Spirit was also present at creation. The NRSV translates v. 2 that a “wind” from God swept over the waters, but that word can also be, and has often been, translated “the Spirit” of God swept over the waters. This is the festival of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus, but in fact, a central character is the Holy Spirit.

And as we leave the Christmas season and begin the season after Epiphany, it is in fact the Spirit whose entry into the story begins to shape our lives through the work of Jesus. And it’s important for us as Lutherans to remember this. Though we confess the Triune God, and invoke God’s name in our worship, in our casual conversation my observation over the years is that we too often fall into an odd, probably unintentional, dualism. We speak of God, and we speak of Jesus, and the implication is that they’re separate somehow. And we don’t really know where to fit the Spirit in, or at least we don’t mention her work in any consistent way.

What is clear from events like the story we heard from Acts this morning is that while at this point in the life of the early Church full-fledged Trinitarian theology isn’t yet a part of the believers’ language, nonetheless the presence of the Holy Spirit was a very real experience of the early Church. Which makes sense since the life of the early Church in Acts all flows post-Pentecost, and that momentous drama of the entrance of the Holy Spirit had to have powerfully shaped the theology and life of those early believers.

But today isn’t Pentecost, you say. And you’re right. And yet, it seems to me that critical to Jesus’ baptism, and therefore to our own baptisms, and John the Baptist himself suggests this today, is that at this point in our story, this point in the drama, the Holy Spirit enters. And we need to pay attention to this entrance.

We begin by remembering that while the practice of Baptism clearly evolved in the early Church, understanding the work of the Spirit in Baptism was of high importance.

We saw this in another drama today, which is kind of funny. Paul finds a rather strange group of believers in Ephesus. What kind of believers they are is a little unclear. Somehow they’ve heard of John the Baptist, and somehow, far away in Asia Minor, they’ve received a baptism of sorts. But as Paul talks to them it becomes apparent that they really haven’t heard of Jesus, just a call to repentance and turning to God. And remarkably, when asked if they received the Spirit when they became believers, they say, ‘We have not even heard that there was a Holy Spirit.”

The reason Paul is examining them a little is that the Spirit sometimes wasn’t waiting for the apostles to act, and the believers learned to watch for this.

The pattern of baptism in the early life in Acts was that evangelists would baptize “in the name of Jesus” – so it’s not completely clear at this point in the Church’s life if the Triune Name was being used. And then the apostles would come, lay hands on them, and pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit upon the believers. We see both of these things done by Paul to these Ephesian believers today. So in Acts 8, Philip preaches to Samaritans who “accept the word of God,” according to Luke, and are baptized by Philip. But then Peter and John come and lay hands on them so that they can receive the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes it doesn’t work that way, however. In Acts 10, the Spirit comes upon a group of Gentiles before anybody does anything, and Peter wisely recognizes that if the Holy Spirit has come, there can be no reason for withholding baptism from Gentiles.

But in general the pattern holds: Baptism with water, followed by prayers invoking the Holy Spirit. Baptism, therefore, was and is the entry point into the community of believers. But subsequent to that, and clearly as important, was joining those new believers to the Pentecost experience. Recognizing that the life of the Holy Spirit is a gift of God to disciples of Jesus, and an important one, and taking the time to ask God for this gift for each believer.

This may seem obvious, but it makes Jesus’ baptism look more and more like an event where we should pay attention to what the Spirit is doing – for Jesus’ sake and for ours.

The mystery of the Incarnate Son of God and what we understand as his full divinity and full humanity means that we can’t truly understand what this event means. If the Holy Spirit was present at his conception, why is the Spirit coming now, and why the form of a dove? But I don’t think it’s necessary that we understand how all this works, and how the Triune God is working in Jesus. Because of course it is beyond us.

What is important to us is that the presence of the Holy Spirit – whom Jesus would later call “his” Spirit – is tangibly a part of Jesus’ baptism. What is interesting is that John foretells the importance of the Holy Spirit to Christian baptism. At least he says that Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit.

As far as we know, Jesus didn’t actually baptize anyone. But John’s point is that baptism – for Jesus, and now for us – is the entrance of the Holy Spirit into the lives of the believers. It’s not just a sign of repentance: it’s literally a new birth, as Jesus himself will say in John chapter 3.

And all of this can be seen in our baptismal rite. This morning, Tate will be washed in the name of God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And after that baptism, he will have hands laid upon him and the Holy Spirit will be invoked, just as in the book of Acts.

We lost our way on this over the centuries, and these two actions had become separated for various reasons, and led to a practice of baptizing infants, and then at confirmation praying for the Holy Spirit. Though the Church believed the Spirit was present at baptism, for a long time the action of laying on of hands was removed from that rite.

With the Lutheran Book of Worship, thankfully, in our Lutheran tradition this laying on of hands was restored to the baptismal rite. At confirmation, the prayer at the laying on of hands asks that the Holy Spirit be stirred up in the believer – because of course the Spirit’s been in that person’s life since baptism.

Here’s the point: clearly the gift we receive in our Baptism, after being claimed into the community of the faithful, is the outpouring of the Spirit – which makes our baptism, according to John, and to Paul, our Pentecost. We weren’t there for that powerful day in Jerusalem where tongues of fire came upon the believers’ heads. But that’s not important. Because the Spirit comes to us in Baptism. And like the first believers, things will change.

So what does that mean? If our baptism is our Pentecost – what can we expect?

Well, Jesus went from here into his ministry. He went into the wilderness for forty days, then began his preaching and teaching and healing. So did the disciples, post-Pentecost. They went from being frightened, cowed people in closed rooms to bold proclaimers of the Good News of God in Jesus.

So it doesn’t seem such a stretch for us to expect the same empowerment and sending. This is a time of year when people are still thinking about New Year’s resolutions – though the paper yesterday said that most people have already abandoned theirs by now. I guess the idea is that if you are feeling the need for transformation, or new starts, now’s as good a time as any.

But what if we really believed that the Spirit is given us for transformation, holiness, obedience, new life? What if our Baptism truly began our ministry? Paul says in Philippians, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” What if we actually believed this and lived this?

I suggest that today we begin to take this very seriously, that each of us, and soon Tate as well, have been given the gift of the presence of God in our lives through the Holy Spirit. And that there is absolutely no reason why we should expect things to be the same. In fact, we should begin to expect that God is calling us to serve, and to do ministry, and to become holy children of God, and also to expect that God will give us the ability to do this.

The call is clear, and has been for 2,000 years. And now the Holy Spirit has come to make it possible with us.

It’s time we Lutherans started remembering that we worship a Triune God.

And that we start believing not only in God the Father, and God the Son, but God the Spirit, who breathed over the waters of creation and brought forth a universe, who came to a young woman and through her gave the world the Son of God, who blew through a group of frightened disciples and changed them, and the world, forever.

That’s the gift of our baptism. That’s what we can and should expect. That the Holy Spirit is working in us to perfect us and transform us, and to empower us to be the grace and love of God in the world for the sake of the world.

If that’s a little frightening to you, well, it is to me, too. But it’s also a little exciting. I can’t wait to see where we are being led.

Friday, January 6, 2012

In the midst of a clamor of people claiming to speak for God, know God, be God, God’s Epiphany in Jesus is the true appearance, shown in his life, death and resurrection, and now appearing in our lives.

Sisters and brothers, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Our confirmands have been working through Joshua, Judges, and Ruth for daily devotional readings over the Christmas break, and tomorrow we’ll be discussing what they’ve read. Central to the experience of the story of the book of Judges is this verse, repeated several times: “In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes.” (17:6) What a wonderfully succinct way to summarize the problems of Israel at the time.

We sometimes hear the same thing about God today – people wish that God would appear and speak to us as in days of old, since no one seems to be hearing God anymore, and everyone does “what is right in their own eyes.” But on this feast of the Epiphany of our Lord, it seems to me that our real difficulty is that there are too many so-called appearances of God, and we don’t know what to do about them.

Epiphany is about literally a manifestation of God in the world, the appearance of God in our lives. For Christians, Jesus is God’s self-revelation – no one knows God except through Jesus the Son of God, who makes God’s love, God’s will, and God’s plan known to us.

But as I said, there are so many people who are claiming to speak for God, or to know what God wants or desires, or even to be God. If we are to celebrate that the real God, the true God, creator of heaven and earth, has been revealed in the world, we want to know if we’re on the right track. How do we know if this Epiphany – God revealed to us in Jesus – is a true epiphany, and not one of thousands of impostors?

It is all Antiochus’ fault that I’m thinking about this.

He’s the wonderful guy who brought us Hanukkah. Antiochus IV was a king in the Seleucid line of Greek rulers of the eastern remnants of Alexander the Great’s empire – they ruled over Asia Minor, Syria, and Palestine. Antiochus IV ruled from 175 BCE to 164 BCE.

Now, Antiochus IV was rather full of himself. His predecessors and successors often chose second names to distinguish themselves from the others, or were nicknamed those second names by others. After all, over time one Antiochus can be confused with another, and there were eventually 13 rulers of that name who were numbered, and five others without number.

His immediate predecessors had impressive nicknames: Antiochus I was called “Soter” – “Savior” – by people whom he saved in battle. Antiochus II was called “Theos” – “God” – again, by a people who regarded him as such for his saving of their nation in war. And Antiochus III – father of IV – called himself “The Great.” A classic favorite, that one. Unfortunately, not so exalted a nickname was given to poor Antiochus VIII “Grypus” – “grypus” means “Hook-Nose.” For, we have to assume, obvious reasons.

But back to Antiochus IV. He chose to name himself Epiphanes – that is, the manifestation of God in the world, Epiphany. He was the first Hellenistic king to assume divine attributes for himself – his predecessors had their titles given them by others. He was also so eccentric and capricious that some of his enemies called him “Epimanes,” a play on his self-made title, a word which means “the Mad One.”

Of course, as he thought was truly God, when he entered Jerusalem in 169 BCE he insisted upon entering the holy of holies in the Temple. In December of 167, as part of his attempt to Hellenize Palestine, he had Temple sacrifices banned and erected a Greek altar in the Temple and sacrificed a pig to Zeus on it.

Not the most brilliant of political moves, to be sure. Jewish revolt in reaction to this enormous sacrilege, led by Judas Maccabeus and his family, resulted in the restoration of a Jewish state for about 100 years, until General Pompey and the Romans conquered Palestine again in 63 B.C.

If this sounds familiar, it should. The festival of Hanukkah celebrates the story that when the Temple was being cleansed and rededicated after this sacrilege, there was only enough non-desecrated oil to burn for one day instead of the eight days needed for the purification. But miraculously, the oil lasted all eight days.
However, on Epiphany it isn’t Hanukkah that interests me. It is Antiochus the Fourth, Epiphanes. Because he is only one of many to claim to be a revelation of God.

And of course, that raises the question: can we distinguish true epiphanies from false?

The problem is that not all who claim to be God or know God are as obviously unhinged as Antiochus. Octavian, the grandnephew and heir to Julius Caesar, took the name Augustus when he became emperor. “Augustus” is Latin for “revered, most holy, excellent.” And with that name he followed the idea that he, like his uncle Julius, was divine, and really cemented for the Romans the custom of believing the emperor to be a divine manifestation. He wasn’t out of his mind as a ruler, though. In fact, he presided over a reign of peace in the whole Roman empire that lasted over 50 years.

And in our time, there are many. Some outlandish, some not. Some claim divinity for themselves, like Antiochus. People like David Koresh, Sun Myung Moon, or Jim Jones, in recent American history. Now, we might want to dismiss them, and other cult leaders of our current time. But many follow such charismatic leaders. And many believe they are the real thing.

Others have divinity claimed for them, like the five-year-old boy in the Twin Cities who is believed to be the eighth reincarnation of a Tibetan Buddhist lama. Strictly speaking, Buddhists don’t understand divinity and God the way we do, but still, these are exalted claims to be made for a human being. When he’s ten, he’ll move to India to develop and grow into the divine spiritual leader he’s believed to be.

But far more prevalent is the New Age tendency simply to claim the divine within. God is manifest in me – as I think and believe, so is God. Which leads of course to this postulation: God’s law is what I decide – therefore what I want is right simply because I want it. So there is not one God, there are potentially seven billion manifestations of the divine, for each of us can create God ourselves.

And again, we Christians scoff. But what makes us any different, we who worship a first century Jewish teacher as God? We who say that Magi from the East followed a star and worshipped a baby born to poor folks as the Savior of the world? We who say that the festival of the Epiphany of Our Lord celebrates that the one, true God is manifest in the world in this baby? How are we different?

Perhaps the Magi can help us. They followed signs, investigated the truth, and eventually worshipped.

For the Magi, I am sometimes amazed they saw this baby as an epiphany. What faith they had, to believe God was present in that place! They believed that this baby was the Savior of the world.

But they did this after their study, after their following of the signs, and after their investigating. And though they knew little of what we know about Jesus, the Magi did their best to discover the truth. And then they fell down and worshipped.

For us, we know so much more about Jesus. How he lived a life of love and taught about God’s grace. Unlike Antiochus, Augustus, Koresh, or any others, he didn’t build himself up. He lived for others. He healed, taught, loved, and said this was the way of God. And that makes sense to us. Not manipulation and self-enhancement. But servanthood and love.

In fact, the psalm chosen for Epiphany – and it was chosen most likely because of its reference to kings bearing gifts to the King’s Son – the psalm describes the true king, the son of God, as the one who has compassion on the poor, who preserves the lives of the needy, who delivers those who are oppressed. Check the claims, and check the evidence of Jesus, the Magi would say. Does he look to be the Son of God or not?

And of course it is his death and resurrection which make us clear that today we truly are celebrating the Epiphany of the true God. Again, this is unlike any other humans claiming to be god whom we’ve mentioned. There is a great story I heard long ago about a man who was trying to develop a religion of his own in France during the Enlightenment. I wish I could remember where this came from, or even if it’s true, but as I heard the story, this man was frustrated that not many followed him or became dedicated to what he saw as truth and as divinity. Expressing these frustrations to a friend, his friend suggested that if he really wanted to start a religion and be believed, he might consider getting himself killed, and then rise on the third day.

Because for us, there is this reality: that the child whom the wise men worshipped as God manifest to the world, grew up and died and rose from the dead for us. He revealed God in a way no phony or impostor could – because no impostor could have such power and love.

And lastly, because we know Jesus specifically, we are prevented from seeking the divine in our own minds. We do not believe that each of us can make God. Or even be God. For us, there is one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, revealed in Jesus, whose life, death and resurrection confirm that Jesus is the Epiphany, the revelation of God in the world for us, and for all people. And in fact, the truth of this Epiphany is that God is with us – so we’re not God, but the Spirit of God comes to us and fills our lives and hearts with faith and life.

“No one has ever seen God,” says the Evangelist John.

“It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” That is the truth that we know and in which we rejoice on this night of the Epiphany. Jesus has truly made God known to us.
May we joyfully believe that this is the real thing, the one Epiphany that really matters, because we know and believe and love this Jesus, who shows us the truth about God.

And may we let the light of God shine through us – not because we are divine, but because in coming to be with us, God has given us the gift to carry this Epiphany into the world, and be God’s light, God’s star, leading people to Jesus. So that Jesus can reveal God’s love to them, too. So they can experience a real Epiphany as we do.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

“They set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy.” Matthew 2:9-10

My grandma used to have a Christmas album, an LP (what we used to have before CDs, for you younger folk) by the Harry Simeone Chorale. Harry Simeone is most famous for “The Little Drummer Boy,” and that was a song on this album. But the one I loved to hear all the time was an arrangement of the spiritual “Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow.” I’ve never heard a better one – it was simple, with a deep bass singing the opening call. Beautiful arrangement.

And what was so compelling for me was the invitation – “There’s a star in the east on Christmas morn; rise up, shepherd, and follow! It will lead to the place where the Savior’s born; rise up, shepherd, and follow!” “Rise up, shepherd, and follow!” This simple spiritual gives the angel’s invitation as if to all of us – go, get up, see what God has done! Now, to be fair, the spiritual conflates two of the stories of Jesus’ birth. There’s no Biblical record that the shepherds saw the star in the East; it was the wise men, the Magi, who followed the star. But the point is the same. (And the shepherds did get up at the angel’s invitation and go to Bethlehem themselves.) As we enter the season of Epiphany this Friday, Jan. 6, the season begun by a celebration of the star-followers who found the infant Jesus, we hear the same invitation both shepherds and Magi heard: rise up, follow!

As it turns out, Epiphany, the season of light, is also a season of invitations to follow. We hear stories in our Sunday worship of Jesus calling disciples at the beginning of his ministry. We celebrate God’s light in the world, and are invited to follow the light, not the darkness. God is saying to us, follow my light, come see what I’ve done for the world in my Son, and then go and tell others. The spiritual says, “leave your ewes and leave your lambs,” and the first disciples were called to leave parts of their lives as well. And so are we. We’re called to follow our Lord’s light, and leave behind the things that would hold us back. This is a hard thing, but it’s a call that points to the light we desperately need in the darkness of our world.

So rise up, look to the East, and find the star God has placed before us, the light of Christ in the world. And then follow! It will lead to light in darkness, life in the midst of death, and joy in the depths of our world. May we, like Magi and shepherds, find our Lord and then tell the world.

- Joseph

Our Saviour’s Needs

Our Saviour's Lutheran Church on Chicago Avenue (up the street toward downtown from Mount Olive) serves the homeless by providing emergency shelter, transitional housing, and a permanent supportive housing program, serving over 650 people annually. They are asking us to partner with them in this ministry. We hope that Mount Olive members will, with their usual generosity, provide some of the needs of the people Our Saviour's serves. Some of these needs are:

 Financial donations are needed to help provide staffing, warm and comfortable facilities, and year-round service to those experiencing homelessness.

 Gift cards: These give residents the dignity of choosing their own purchases. Most needed are Target, grocery stores and Metro Transit.

 Day Planners are crucial to the residents' ability to keep their commitments and gain independence.

For details, contact Colleen O'Connor Toberman at 612-872-4193 X25 or volunteer@oshousing.org Please bring your donations to Mount Olive and place them in the designated receptacle. Gift cards should be taken to the office for security. Your participation in and support for this ministry is sure to be greatly appreciated.Book Discussion Group

For it's meeting on January 21 (postponed one week this month due to the annual Conference on Liturgy), the Book Discussion Group we will read William Faulkner's A Light in August. And for the February 11 meeting the selection will be Native Son, by Richard Wright.

Tenth Annual Conference on Liturgy Liturgy ShapesJanuary 13-14, 2012

The conference begins Friday evening, January 13, at 7:30 p.m. with a hymn festival, “Liturgy Shapes.” Leadership will be provided by Mount Olive Cantor David Cherwien, The National Lutheran Choir, and author and poet, Susan Palo Cherwien.

On Saturday, hear keynote speaker Gordon Lathrop discuss how liturgy shapes our believing and how liturgy shapes our sending. Participants will be invited to choose from four workshops which will explore this topic further. Senator John Marty will lead a workshop on the ways in which liturgy influences our public lives. Susan Palo Cherwien will offer a session on worship and language. Joseph Crippen, pastor of Mount Olive, will offer a presentation on children and the liturgy. The fourth session is continued conversation with Gordon Lathrop.

The day will open with Morning Prayer at 9:00 a.m. and close with Evening Prayer at 4:00 p.m. Gordon Lathrop will be the guest preacher on Sunday, January 15.

Cost for Mount Olive members is $35/person.

Adult Forum Topics for January

Jan. 8 Dwight Penas will lead a presentation on the Baptism of JesusJan. 15 Art Halbardier will lead a presentation on Development of the Nicene CreedJan. 22 & 29: Susan Cherwien will offer a 2-part series on Hymns and Worship.

A Familiar Story

One cool, quiet night, many, many years ago, in Bethlehem, a baby boy was born in a stable, kept warm by animals living there.

The mother, Mary, held the baby in her loving arms, as Joseph proudly gazed at his beautiful son.

Mary had a dream previously and God told her, “His name will be called Jesus. He is my Son in whom I am well pleased.” A

ngels appeared in the sky to shepherds in the fields tending their flocks, saying, “Do not be afraid. Go and see the miraculous baby born in a stable, The large star you see in the sky will guide you.”

The huge chorus of angels went away singing, “He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God and Prince of Peace.”

The large star the angels sang of was so brilliant in the sky that many countries away, wisemen were curious about this new star. They mounted their camels and followed where the huge star led them.

Their journey was long, eventually bringing them to the manger in Bethlehem, where they saw Mary, Joseph, and the new baby, Jesus.

They bowed down to worship this Holy Child and offered their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

On that quiet night many years ago, the stage was set for the coming of God’s Son, who will love us, save us from our sins and teach us about God’s grace and kindness, forgiveness and love for us all.

And now, all these years later, each Christmas we follow the star, shepherds, and wisemen to the manger where the Christ Child is waiting for us.

At God’s beckoning, we follow him, bask in his love, and know that we are truly God’s children.

Blessed Christmas to all, as we renew our relationship with God and his only Son, Jesus Christ, our beloved Savior. Share joy, laughter, smiles and love to all you meet. Best wishes and blessings for your 2012.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

We’re given the name of the Triune God in our baptism, marked with “Father, Son and Holy Spirit,” and, adopted as God’s children, we are called to live into that name in the world and be a part of God’s saving work in Jesus.

Sisters and brothers, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

So here’s a little test on New Year’s Day, the feast day celebrating the name of Jesus. Do you know what your name means? Question two: do you know if your parents chose that name for its meaning or for other reasons? We spent a lot of time thinking about names for our children. We wanted Biblical names, but not just any Biblical names. I mean, I’ve always loved the name “Maher-shalal-hash-baz” (Is. 8:1), which means “the spoil speeds, the prey hastens,” but that’s a lot for a kindergartener to learn how to spell. And actually, part of our choosing was that we wanted the people in the Bible whose names we used to be good people, too, possible role models, as well as having their names mean something special. With their middle names, we weren’t as concerned about the meaning of the names as much as the people for whom they were named – we used family names in the middle, and again, we had lots of reasons why we chose the ones we did. There is much to a name.

And so in our world, there is much to a name, especially last names. In many places in the past, though our nation is supposedly a melting pot, if the name you bore was of a different immigrant nationality than your beloved, his or her parents would not approve of the match. (My mother’s mother was suspicious of Swedes, among others. Maybe you have stories from back in your family’s history, too.) It’s probably less so today, at least in some circles. But your name still matters. Who you are, where you came from, what name you bear, is very important. And your name is also your reputation – especially in small towns. If your family name somehow was associated with scandal or with some shame, it could be very hard to be taken seriously or respected in certain communities. And even today there are now websites devoted to making sure your online reputation, your “name,” is kept clean.

Today is eight days after Christmas. Eight days after birth, Jewish boys are circumcised and named. So today we celebrate that momentous event in the life of the Son of God: he is claimed as a part of the covenant people, and he is named with the name the angel gave his parents before his birth. “Jesus,” or in Aramaic, “Yeshua.” The Hebrew is also familiar, “Joshua.” Little Yeshi. It was a common name, a name of a hero of the people. But it also had a meaning of its own: “Yahweh saves.” “The LORD saves” – that’s the name this little boy gets.

For us, the equivalent of Jesus’ circumcision and naming happens at our baptism, especially if we are baptized as babies. We have to wait a week to celebrate Jesus’ baptism, and another naming, this time as he is an adult, beginning his ministry. At eight days old, it’s not clear that anyone would have read anything into Jesus’ name other than that it was familiar and well-loved. But that’s the interesting thing: this little boy is named “the LORD saves,” and he will come to live that name in the world. Even if at this point in his life, it’s more a secret identity. For us, as we are baptized into the very name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Paul reminds us today we, too, were adopted as children of God and heirs of the promise, we, too, are brought into the covenant people. The question is, is this also a secret identity for us? Or will we bear God’s name into the world in a significant way?

The idea of one’s true identity being somewhat hidden is a classic one in literature.

I love fairy tales; I love to read them still. And naming is very important to a fairy tale. Who you are, what your true identity is. There are lots of stories of children of kings and queens being raised in a poor home, who then come into their identity, their true reality, their true name.

But this flows throughout literature. Think of Dickens’ Great Expectations. The whole book deals with how the main character, Pip, discovers who he truly is. He tries to be different things, but he has to discover his true identity, the person he really is, not the image he wishes he could be.

The thing about fairy tales is that, whether anyone else ever knows the true identity of the person, that person often does. And it affects how they live in the world, even with a hidden identity. Snow White lives as a princess with grace and kindness, though exiled to a cottage in the forest. Cinderella is a lovely, kind girl, like the noble-born child she is, even though she is reduced to slavery by her stepmother and stepsisters. They all live according to their true identity.

This is what Jesus models for us: he lives his identity, his reality, his name in the world. He embodies “the LORD saves.”

The Jewish man Yeshua, as we will hear next week, is identified in his baptism as the beloved Son of God. Whatever he did in his first decades of life, from that point he goes on to do the ministry of a child of God – bringing God’s love into the world in his own person. He was a poor, wandering preacher. But he was the Son of God. And it affected all he was, all he did, all he said.

And in dying and rising from death, he fulfilled the promise of this day, of his naming: as the Son of God, named Jesus, he saved the world. Which makes our calling on this day pretty important, too: we claim to follow this Yeshua, this “LORD saves,” this Jesus. And so we’re called to live up to our name.

It’s interesting to me that the Numbers 6 passage giving us our benediction is chosen for this day. But it’s no accident: here the LORD calls Aaron to place the very name of God in blessing on the people. In doing this, the LORD God is claiming the people, marking them with his name as a blessing, but also as a call.

It’s exactly our reality in our baptism – we are also linked forever to the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And if we, too, like Jesus, are children of God, named for God, we, too, like Jesus, are called to live that identity.

Christian life turns out not to be about trying to be like somebody, copying Jesus – it’s actually about being somebody: children of the King of the universe. Whatever name your parents gave you, this name is on your brow, the name of the LORD God. That is what living your name is all about: living in the joy of knowing you are God’s child, as Paul shares. Living with the hope that this Jesus not only saves the world, but saves you, loves you. And living with the reality that your true identity is “child of God.” You are marked with the name of the Triune God, and for good or for ill you bear that name as a witness in the world.

Ultimately, Jesus lived out his name. It no longer was a secret, if it ever was when he was a child. For us, that’s our challenge, to live up to the name given us in such a way that it’s no secret we’ve been adopted by God and given God’s call to love the world through our Lord Jesus. So that in all we do and all we say, in all we are, we are known to be children of the God who loves the world with an undying love.

Some names seem too big for children to carry.

So we shorten them (although in my family, we never did): At first a big name like Catherine, or Elizabeth, or William, might sound strange when put on a tiny infant. Of course, it could be Maher-shalal-hash-baz. Or one of my favorites, Zaphenath-paneah. (That was the patriarch Joseph’s Egyptian name.)

But they grow into it, until you can’t imagine them being anything else. And you and I have been given the name Christian. Child of God. We bear the Triune God’s name into the world. It’s too big for us, perhaps. But we’re all growing into that name, that precious name which is ours in baptism. And through the gift of the Holy Spirit, we will grow into the name until it fits us, or we fit it. In the meantime, more and more, God will help us to live as the children of God that we really are.